Hey, Parish 1 Resident!* Here's a question for you. How well do you know your Tenth neighbor?

Sure, you attend church service each week. You see familiar faces in the pews or at Sunday School. Maybe you go to a neighborhood small group bible study. But in a city of neighborhoods, how well do you know others in your parish, beyond your small corner of Philadelphia? 

Tenth is a big place, and Parish 1 covers a wide span of neighborhoods in our city. Yet as Christ-followers, we are called—commanded, even—to love one another (Matthew 22:36-40). It is not only good for us; it is also how the world can see the power of God at work (John 13:34-35).

How can we love one another if we do not know one another, and how can we know one another if we do not spend time with one another, at each others’ homes and in each others’ lives? 

Community That Is Serious about Community

On Sunday, October 4, take a step towards community life by coming to our Parish 1 Picnic Potluck from 3–6 PM at FDR Park, on Picnic Sites 18 and 20 (sign up to tell us what you’re bringing). We'll have good food, fall crafts, and fun games. More importantly than what you'll eat or do, however, are the fellow brothers and sisters you’ll get to meet and mingle with in our body of Christ.

The picnic is just the firstfruit of a renewed effort to be a community that is serious about community. This summer, a group of Parish 1 laypeople and officers collaborated on a vision statement that captures our desire to grow in the area of cultivating community. 

Our Vision

We’ve articulated a vision statement about what kind of community we strive to be, one that:

  • encourages one another in following Jesus (1 Thessalonians 5:11)
  • practices hospitality and bears one another’s burdens (Romans 12:13, 1 Peter 4:9, and Galatians 6:2)
  • reflects the light and peace of Jesus to our neighbors (Matthew 5:14 and John 14:27) 

But vision is just a start. We can begin with pumpkins and pasta salad, but let’s make sure it doesn’t end there.


*Not sure if you're in Parish 1?  If you live south of Girard and in between the two rivers (including Old City, Center City, South Philadelphia, and Fairmount/Art Museum), count yourself in. You can also view a map with parish demarcations.

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Please include the following statement on any distributed copy: By Anne Chen. © 2024 Tenth Presbyterian Church. Website: tenth.org